Web printing machine



y 22, 1934- F. LAMATSCH EF'AL 1,959,371

WEB PRINTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 25, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet l NVEN'I'ORS FIG.I.

May 22, 1934.

F. LAMATSCH ET AL WEB PRINTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 25, l930 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS y 22, 1934- F. LAMATSCH ET AL 1,959,371

WEB PRINTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 25, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet I5 INVENTORS Patented May 22, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WEB PRINTING MACHINE poration of New York receiver nplication August 25,

W TClaims.

This invention relates to improvements in web printing machines of the class used for printing newspapers and similar products.

In pending applications of Harry V. Ball, Serial No. 267,330 filed April 4, 1928, now Patent No.

1,835,585, dated December 8, 1931, and Serial No. 322,198 filed November 27, 1928, now Patent No. 1,787,969, dated January 6, 1931, multi-unit printing machines are disclosed in which the printing units are arranged with one of their printing couples in superposed relation to the other couple and in narrow framing, thereby providing press units of unusually small dimensions longitudinally of the machine.

The invention herein disclosed constitutes a further improvement in machines of this class with the object of providing a press unit in which one of the printing couples is superposed over the other couple in narrow framing, in which the working floor level coincides with the base of the unit, and in which all of the printing cylinders are accessible from platforms supported between the units at an elevation not exceeding one step above the working floor.

It is an object of the invention to provide a printing unit for a multi-unit printing machine having a narrow framing, that will occupy a minimum amount of space in the machine and in which the printing cylinders and other parts of the unit can be conveniently reached without climbing.

It is another object of the invention to provide a printing unit for a multi-unit printing machine, having an improved form of ink distributing mechanism.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a printing machine unit of generally improved construction, having mechanism that is simple, durable and relatively inexpensive in construction, as well as convenient, practical, serviceable and efficient in its use.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts, and in the details of con- ,struction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that various changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of a print- Irving 'lfrust Company,

1930, Serial No. 477,670'

Figure 4 is a detail plan view partly in section,

showing a portion of the means for operating the inking mechanism as it appears in the direction of arrow 4 of Figure 3.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, 11 indicates the base frame of the printing machine. Two printing units are shown and designated respectively A and B. The side frames of the printing units are indicated at 12. Similar side frames are used on the opposite side of the machine, a portion of one of them being shown in Figure 3 andindicated 12'. A folder of well known design is shown and indicated generally by the letter F.

The main driving shaft 14 is provided with bevel gears 15 that mesh with similar gears 16 on inclined shafts 17 and serve as a means to drive the printing units. Similarly, the mitre gear 18 on the main shaft, meshes with gear l9 on the shaft 21 and serves to drive the folding cylinders 22 through-the gears 23 and 23'. The shaft 21 is extended upward and carries the gear 24. The gear 24 meshes with the gear 245 and serves to drive the drag roller 25 through suitable gearing. Guide rollers and turner bars are diagrammatically indicated in Figure 1 and serve to guide the webs W and W from the printing units to the folder, the path of the web from unit A, being around the guide. rollers 26, the compensating roller 27 and guide rollers 28 and 29 to the drag roller 25. The path of the web from the unit B is around guide rollers 26', 28', the compensating roller 27', guide roller 30' and the roller 29 to the drag roller 25. It will be understood that the web runs just described are suitable for a single widthpress with a single folder or a double width press with a double folder. When a double width press is being used with a single folder, the web run from the unit A would be over guide rollers 26, turner bars 31, guide roller 32, compensating roller 33 and guide roller 29 to the drag roller 25, while the web from the unit B would be led around drag rollers 26, turner bars 31, guide roller 32', compensating roller 33', guide rollers 30 and 29 to thedrag roller 25 as before. It will be understood that the compensating rollers 33 and 33' are supported in bearings that are movable in a horizontal plane and means to adjust them are provided in order to vary the length of the web path between the units and the folder for regulating the pointsat which the'several webs are cut off and folded by the folding mechanism.

The printing units, each include a first or lower printing couple and a perfecting or upper printing couple. The first printing couple has a form cylinder 34 and an impression cylinder 35, supported preferably in horizontal alignment and arranged to rotate in bearings carried in the frames 12 and 12. A first or lower ink cylinder 36, a second or upper ink cylinder 37, form rollers 38 and'39, transfer rollers 40 and 41 and distributing rollers 42, 43 and 44, are all likewise rotatably supported by bearings carried by the frames 12 and 12. The printing cylinders of the second printing couple are oppositely arranged, and are indicated at 34' and 35'. The inkcylinders for the second or perfecting couple are indicated at 36' and 37, form rollers at 38' and 39' and transfer rollers 40. and 41' and the distributing rollers at 42, 43' and 44'. It will be: noted that theform cylinder 34' is in vertical alignment with the impression cylinder 35 and the form cylinder 34 is in vertical alignment with the impression cylinder 35'. Ink supplying mechanism is shown herein in the form of a pump device which is well known in the art and which provides separate ducts each of which feeds ink to a separate section of the inking cylinder. The ink supply mechanism for the first printing couple is indicated at 45, and that for the second printing couple at 45'.

The side frames 12 and 12' are arranged to support an upper frame 46 which is shown broken away in Figure 1, but which it will be understood, carries bearings for the guide rollers 28, 28', 29 and 29 and supports for the turner bars 31 and 31 in accordance with the usual practise. In a printing machine having a greater number, of units, the frame 46 may be extended the entire length of the machine.

Web guide rollers are provided in the printing units at 4'7, 48, and 49 by means of which the webs W and W are led from suitable mechanism located on a level below the base frame of the printing machine to and through the printing units and thence'around the guide rollers to the drag roller 25 on the folder as hereinbefore described.

Web' feeding plates or guides 51 and 51' are carried by suitable brackets attached to the frame of the machine and so arranged that when threading the end of the web through the machine, it may be placed on the feeding plates and pushed forward into the bite of the-printing cylinders, thus simplifying the operation of threading the web and avoiding danger of accident to the operator. The arrangement of guides of this kind is fully described in Patent No. 1,613,960 granted to L. A. Schmidt on January 11, 1927.

The unit drive shafts 1'7 are supported in bearings formed in brackets secured to the side frame and indicated at 52, 53 and 54. The bevel gear indicated at 55 is secured to the shaft 1'7 and meshes with a similar gear that is connected with pivoted at 57 to brackets 58 secured to the frames 12 and 12' and is arranged at a convenient height to permit access to a form cylinder of the unit on which the platform is mounted, and also to a form cylinder of theadjacent unit. The arrangement of the cylinders in the frame, is such that the platform can be placed at a height not exceeding one step and still provide convenient access to the adjacent printing cylinders.

The preferred inking mechanism is shown in greater detail in Figures 2 and 3, and in addition to the parts previously described, includes mechanism for driving the ink cylinders and moving them axially.

The impression cylinder-35 and the form cylinder 34, and likewise the impression cylinder 35' and the form cylinder 34' aregeared together in the usual manner, and the'shaft of the form cylinder 34' is extended as indicated in Figure 3 at 59 and a gear 61 is secured to it, and this is similarly true of the shaft of the form cylinder 34. This gear meshes with an idler 62 rotatably supported on a stud 63. The idler 62 meshes with a gear 64 that is secured to the shaft 65 of the inking cylinder 37'. Similarly, an idler 66 is rotatably supported on stud 67 and meshes with the gear 64, and with a gear 68 that is secured to the shaft 69 of the ink cylinder 45. Means are thus provided for rotating both ink cylinders in timed relation with the printing cylinders.

A gear housing and bracket indicated at 71, is

secured to the side frame 12' and is fitted with bearings at several points indicated by the numeral '72, which serve to rotatably support a crank shaft '73. The member '71 also serves to support one end of each of the studs 63 and 6'7, the opposite ends of which are secured in the frame 12'. A worm wheel '74 is secured to the crank shaft '73 and meshes with a worm '75 secured to the shaft 59 of the cylinder 34'.

The crank shaft '73 is formed with cranks '76 and '76, one of these being shown best in Figure 4. Connecting rods '77 are secured to wrist pins '78 that rotate in holes formed in lugs '78 that extend from the caps '79. The caps '79'are secured to swivel rings 81, which are rotatably supported on the shafts 65 and 69. The assemblage including the cap '79 and the swivel ring 81 constitutes the preferred form of the mechanism hereinafter referred to as a swivel'member. It will be understood that a ball bearing indicated at 82 has its inner member secured to the shaft 65 by means of the nut 83 and the outer member of the ball bearing is secured in the swivel ring 81 by the cap '79, and this description applies to the other ink roller shaft 69. The ball hearing which is of the deep groove type is adapted to transmit axial thrust in either direction and the rotation of the crank shaft '73 will thus result in moving the shafts 65 and 69 forward and backward longitudinally in their bearings, and the inking cylinders will simultaneously be rotated through the gear train hereinbeforedescribed.

Means for adjusting the impression contact between the form cylinders and the impression cylinders is provided by eccentric bushings 84 and 84 which form the bearings for the shafts of the form cylinders 34 and 34'. Segments 85 and 85' are secured respectively to bearing bushings 84 and 84' and mesh with worms 86 and 86 having shafts 8'7 and 87' rotatably supported in brackets 88 and 88 secured to the side frames 12 and 12'. It will be understood that by rotating the shafts 8'7 and 8'7 that their respective form cylinders will be moved with relation to the cooperating impression cylinders and may be adjusted to obtain the requisite printing pressure. Cylinder adjustment mechanism of this kind is fully described in F. Lamatsch Patent 1,824,436 granted September 22, 1931.

The arrangement of the printing couples and the inking'mechanism, in the frames of the machine is such that the ink distributing cylinders are within the space bounded by vertical lines tangent to the peripheries of their respective form cylinders, and the axes of the cylinders of the upper printing couple are in substantially vertical alignment with the axes of the printing cylinders of the lower couple and separated therefrom a distance not exceeding the width of the side frames of the machine. This arrangement permits free working space between the printing units and the printing cylinders are all accessible from operating platforms that are but one step higher than the fioor level.

What we claim is: I

1. In a printing unit for a multi-unit printing machine having its units arranged in a line on a floor level, a first printing couple, a perfecting printing couple in superposed relation to the first printing couple, each printing couple having a form cylinder and an impression cylinder in horizontal alignment, an inking mechanism for each printing couple, the inking mechanism for the first printing couple including an upper ink cylinder positioned immediately adjacent and below its form cylinder and a lower ink cylinder adjacent and below the upper ink cylinder and in close proximity to the floor level, the inking mechanism for the perfecting printing couple including an upper ink cylinder positioned immediately adjacent and below its form cylinder and a lower ink cylinder adjacent and below the upper ink cylinder and in close proximity to the impression cylinder of the first printing couple, each ink cylinder being of substantially less diameter than the form cylinders, opposed form rollers of less diameter than the ink cylinders in running engagement with the upper ink cylinder of each inking mechanism and a form on the cooperating form cylinder, the close proximity of the form cylinders and the upper ink cylinders of the inking mechanisms spacing the opposed form rollers of each inking mechanism a relatively great distance apart, and means for supplying ink to each inking mechanism. Y

2. In a printing unit for a multi-unit printing machine having its units arranged in a line on a floor level, a first printing couple, a perfecting printing couple in superposed relation to the first printing couple, each printing couple having a form cylinder and an impression cylinder in horizontal alignment, the form cylinder of each printing couple being substantially ,in vertical alignment with the impression cylinder of the other printing couple, and an inking mechanism for each printing couple, each inking mechanism including a plurality of superposed inking cylinders, cooperating distributing rollers, transfer rollers and form rollers, the inking mechanism for the first printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending substantially from the form cylinder to the floor, and the inking mechanism for the perfecting printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending" substantially from this form cylinder to the impression cylinder of the first printing couple.

3. In a printing unit for a multi-unit printing machine having its units arranged in a line on a floor level, a frame, a first printing couple, a

perfecting printing couple in superposed relation to the first printing couple, each printing couple having a form cylinder and an impression cylinder in horizontal alignment, the form cylinder of each printing couple being in substantially vertical alignment with the impression cylinder of the other printing couple, and an inking mechanism for each printing couple, the inking mechanism for the first printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending substantially from this form cylinder to the floor, and the inking mechanism for the perfecting printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending substantially from this form cylinder to the'impression cylinder of the first printing couple, the vertical distance between the axes of the cylinders of the first printing couple and the axes of the cylinders of the perfecting printing couple not exceeding the width of the frame.

4. In a printing unit for a multi-unit printing machine having its units arranged in a line on a floor level, a frame, a first printing couple, a perfecting printing couple in superposed relation to the first printing couple, each printing couple having a form cylinder and an impression cylinder in horizontal alignment, the form cylinder of each printing couple being in substantially vertical alignment with the impression cylinder of the other printing couple, and an inking mechanism for each printing couple, each inking mechanism including a plurality of superposed inking cylinders, cooperating distributing rollers, transfer rollers and form rollers, the inking mechanism for the first printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending substantially from this form cylinder to the floor, and inking mechanism for the perfecting printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending substantially from this form cylinder to the impression cylinderof the first printing couple, the vertical distance between the axes of the cylinders of the first printing couple and the axes of the cylinders of the perfecting printing couple not exceeding the width of the frame.

5. In a web printing machine, a plurality of printing units arranged in a line on a fioor level,

an aisle space between the units, each unit including a frame, a first printing couple, a perfecting printing couple, each printing couple having a form cylinder and an impression cylinder in horizontal alignment, the form cylinder of each printing couple being substantially in vertical alignment with the impression cylinder of the other printing couple, a multi-cylinder inking mechanism for each printing couple, the inking mechanism for the first printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending substantially from this form cylinder to the floor, and the inking mechanism for the perfecting printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending from this form cylinder to the impression cylinder of the first printing couple, the vertical distance from the fioor level ,to the axes of the cylinders of the perfecting printing couple not exceeding the horizontal distance between the centers of adjacent units.

6. In a web printing machine, a plurality of printing units arranged in a line on a floor level,

having a form cylinder and an impressioncylinder in horizontal alignment, the form cylinder of each printing couple being substantially in vertical alignment with the impression cylinder 01 the other couple, and'an inking mechanism for each printing couple, the inking mechanism for the first printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending from this form cylinder to the fioor, and the inking mechanism for the perfecting printing couple positioned below its form cylinder and extending from this form cylinder to the impression cylinder of the first print-- width to permit free movement 01' an operator therein, each printing unit including a frame, a first printing couple including horizontally-disposed form and impression cylinders, a perfecting printing couple in superposed relation to the first printing couple and including horizontallydisposed form and impression cylinders, the form cylinder of each printing couple being substantially in vertical alignment with the impression cylinder of theother printingcouple, an inking mechanism for each printing couple, the inking mechanism -ior the first printing couple posi-, tioned below its form cylinder and extending vertically from this form cylinder to the floor, and

the inking mechanismior the perfecting printing couple'positioned below its form cylinder and extending vertically from its form cylinder to the impression cylinder of the first printing couple, the vertical distance from the floor level to the axes of the cylinders of the perfecting printing couple not exceeding the horizontal distance between the centers of adjacent units, and the vertical distance between the axes of the cylinders oi the first printing couple and the axes of the cylinders of the perfecting printing couple not exceeding the width of the frame.

FREDERICK LAMATSCH. CHARLES W. GINSBERG. 

